How Continuing Education and Training is Changing in the Office

There are a few things the vast majority of successful businesses have in common. One trend that’s seen over and over is employee training. Companies that invest in their employees by implementing a continuing education program and training ultimately improve productivity and quality as well.

As workers become more mobile and remote offices become commonplace, businesses must learn how to adapt their training and continuing education. Some people learn things best in a classroom environment, but that isn’t always possible, or even necessary anymore.

The changing workforce is also a contributing factor. Many young workers from the Millennial generation prefer to learn online at their own pace rather than doing organized education with a large group.

In large businesses with offices in multiple locations, you might have to use novel approaches for continuing and management education. Technology is on your side, and you don’t need General Electric’s $1 billion training budget to create an effective continuing education program.

Onboarding New Hires With an LSM

An important part of setting new employees up for success is putting them through an onboarding process. Onboarding gives a new hire the information and tools they need to complete their jobs and immerse themselves in the corporate culture.

A popular onboarding solution is learning management software (LMS). One look at the list of updated LMS leaders will show that there are programs for businesses of every size. It also points to the importance of cloud-based services in continuing education. All of the top LMS programs can be deployed through the cloud or on-premise.

LMS gives your business a way to make the onboarding process consistent for all employees no matter where they work. Cloud computing allows employees to access the program from anywhere so training can be done at the office or at home. Learning management software can also be used to create, manage and track advanced training for seasoned employees.

Broadcasting Seminar Training

Sometimes a seminar style lesson is the most impactful way to impart education. When a member of the upper management or special guest speaker is a talented presenter that’s part of the appeal.

Luckily, the audience can expand far beyond the venue with a few simple devices. Real-time streaming has changed Internet entertainment, but it’s also affecting education. All you need is a smartphone and a Facebook account to use the social media site’s live video streaming feature. Let employees know when to tune in and your entire workforce can watch the seminar as it happens.

Bonus – you can also use social media platforms as a resource for informal employee education and sharing industry news.

Screen Capture Demos and How-Tos

Giving a live demo or Q&A is almost always informative for the people who attend. But now those educational benefits don’t have to be limited to the employees who were able to join the discussion.

A program like Camtasia can be used to record your screen as your give a demonstration. It’s an ideal solution for software training when a number of employees need to be familiarized with a program. The screen recordings can be saved a video file for internal use, uploaded on your company YouTube channel or added as a resource with your LMS.

No matter what strategies or resources you use customization is the key. The more you can tailor your employee education and training to your unique company the more effective it will be. Look for an LMS that’s designed for your industry and whenever possible upgrade your accounts so that you have more control over the features and employee education.